Page 5 of Whatever Lola Wants (Odyssey #2)

He rose from behind the massive desk, and immediately the room seemed to shrink.

He was white, a few inches over six feet, and dressed in gray slacks and a snowy white shirt open at the throat.

His dark hair was shorter than the last time she’d seen him, and he was clean shaven.

His green eyes were warm, but no less piercing for it.

He held out a hand. “ Lola .”

She took it, noting wryly that he could’ve held both her hands in one of his and still had room for his wallet and keys. The man was huge. The only man she’d ever met who was bigger was Simon .

“Michael.” She paused a moment. “ May I call you Michael ?”

“Of course.” He gestured to the chair across the desk and returned to his seat. He waited while she sat, fingers steepled together under his chin.

“I spoke with Xander Hayes ,” he began, watching her with those piercing eyes.

Lola smiled as she thought of skinny, friendly, dominant down to his bones Xander . “ How is he?”

“He’s well. He said to tell you hello.”

“I’ll have to give him a call.”

“He was surprised to hear from me, especially when I mentioned your name. I got the impression he didn’t think you’d be out of the scene this long.”

“I stepped away because I was finishing law school and working two jobs,” she told him, answering his unspoken question.

“That would certainly have taken up a great deal of time and energy.”

She nodded her acknowledgement. “ I never intended to leave the scene permanently, but with the move to Chicago and work, it hasn’t been a priority these last few years.”

“And now you find yourself with…renewed interest?” he ventured.

“You could say recent events have reminded me what I’m missing.”

His smile warmed. “ And how are Grant and Anna ?”

“They’re well. Engaged .”

“I hadn’t heard.” Delight made his green eyes sparkle. “ They haven’t been in for a few weeks.”

“I just found out myself last night,” she told him. “ Anna tells me they’ll be here tonight.”

“I’ll be delighted to be able to offer my congratulations in person.” His expression shifted, becoming subtly more reserved. “ Xander had nothing but good things to say about you. He appears to hold you in very high regard.”

She absolutely needed to make time to call her old friend. “ That feeling is entirely mutual.”

“He tells me you’re quite proficient with needle play?”

“It’s one of my main areas of interest, yes.”

His gaze was openly assessing now. “ We have several members who’ve expressed interest in it, but no one who has any experience. It’s not one of my areas of interests.”

“People tend to have strong reactions to needles. They either love them or hate them.”

“Yes.” He tapped his fingers together, the only movement he’d made since he’d sat down. “ I was planning to find a guest presenter to do a demonstration for our members sometime this summer.”

She smiled now. “ I’m happy to do a demo, if you like.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. You brought your kit with you?”

“I did.” She bent and unzipped her leather bag, pulling out the case. She opened it, then set it on the desk facing him.

She sat patiently while he scanned the contents. He reached out a hand, then sent her a questioning look. She nodded, giving him permission to touch. He picked up the medical stapler, his brow raised in question.

“Stapler,” she explained. “ For closing surgical wounds. Or other, more pleasurable activities.”

“Interesting,” he said with no inflection, and set it back in the case with the care of a man handling a ticking bomb.

He sat back, apparently satisfied, so she picked up the case, closed it, and tucked it back into her bag.

“What other kinds of play are you experienced in?”

She imagined he knew all that— Xander would have given him a full accounting of her skills. But he wanted to hear it from her, so she’d tell him. “ I enjoy impact play, and bondage.”

“Suspension?”

She shook her head. “ I don’t work with rope much.

I enjoy restraints on their own, or as an added element to a scene.

I like impact play, but despite my best efforts to build upper body strength, there’s only so much muscle I can put on.

A heavy flogging tires me out long before a bottom is done, so I stick with things that don’t require a lot of muscle, like a cane.

And I enjoy sensual play. Wax play, that kind of thing. Knives are also a particular interest.”

“You like sharp things.”

She nodded. “ I like sharp things.”

“What about as a bottom?”

She hesitated, and he quirked an eyebrow. “ Problem ?”

She shook her head. “ As a bottom, I like almost everything I enjoy as a top. But I don’t bottom like most submissives.”

“I’m intrigued.”

“I’m an escape artist.”

A gleam of amusement appeared in his eyes. “ Really ?”

She fought the urge to squirm, feeling uncomfortable for the first time since she’d walked into the room. And from the faint curve of his lips, he knew it. Knowing it was best, she laid it out as simply as she could.

“I like to fight. I don’t particularly care if I win, that part doesn’t matter to me. But I need the struggle.”

“I assume you’re smart enough to spell that out in pre-scene negotiations.”

She chuckled. “ Of course.”

“So you’re not trying to anger a top, or push him—or her—into punishing you?”

She shook her head. “ Not at all. It’s part of the game for me. Part of the play. The escaping is an easy way to fire the starting gun.” Then she grinned. “ And it’s fun.”

“It sounds like it would be quite a show. You said on the phone you had some questions?”

Lola nodded. “ A lot of clubs I’ve been to are uneasy with a switch. It always makes people more comfortable if they can put people into boxes that make sense to them—even in an out-of-the-box lifestyle. I wanted to find out if you have a policy I should be aware of.”

He contemplated her silently for a moment before shaking his head. “ We’ve had a switch or two visit us, but most of our membership falls squarely into the Dom or sub categories. However , as long as your negotiations are clear and you’re honest with potential play partners, that’s all we require.”

“Do you have a lot of members who enjoy blood play?”

He frowned slightly. “ Not many, no. Why do you ask?”

“Needle play is a form of blood play, though it doesn’t usually get too messy. I just wondered if you have a designated area for blood sports.”

“Ah.” He tapped his fingers together again. “ It would be restricted to the lower dungeon, preferably the medical room. It’s best equipped for easy cleanup. However , if it’s unavailable, there are other spaces that could be equipped on the fly.”

She nodded. “ That’s good to know.”

“Any other questions?”

“Just one.” She smiled at him. “ How do I fill out an application?”

He picked up a tablet and held it out. “ You’re welcome to stay tonight as a guest, but you’ll need to fill this out and return it before your membership can be officially approved.

Since you’re a switch, I’ve included the forms we use for both Dominants and submissives.

If you intend to bottom at all in the club, the submissive form is not optional. ”

She took the tablet and scrolled through. It didn’t look all that different from the application she’d filled out for The Spot in San Francisco . She glanced up. “ I assume you require a standard health screen, STI testing?”

He nodded. “ You’re welcome to have it done at with your regular doctor. We just require a copy of the results. And we’ll need that before you’re allowed to do any kind of play involving bodily fluids, including sex.”

She nodded and reached into the toy bag, coming up with an envelope with confidential stamped across the sealed flap. “ I took the liberty.”

He accepted the envelope, tapping it lightly against his palm as he studied her. Finally , he smiled. “ Things don’t really get hopping around here until at least ten o’clock. Plenty of time to go home and change, if you like.”

She was unoffended. Jeans and a blazer were not standard fetish wear. “ I brought something with me,” she said and, going with instinct, sent him a wink. “ Just in case.”

He looked startled for a moment, then his mouth curved into a smile.

It transformed his face from handsome to devastatingly beautiful.

“ Oh yes, this is going to be interesting. Well , I’ll have one of the staff show you to the locker rooms when you’re ready.

You’re welcome to sit at the bar with the tablet, or I can send you a link to the forms to do at home. ”

“I might do that with the submissive forms, but I’d prefer to complete the rest of it now.”

“Do you intend to play tonight?”

She arched an eyebrow. “ I’m not joining up to sit at the bar and look pretty.”

“Something tells me this is going to be an interesting night.” He walked around the desk to open the door for her. “ Welcome to Odyssey .”